CHOOSE THE LIFE - Bible · 2009. 4. 17. · 6 Choose the Life – a disciple's guide • Love as Jesus loved • Train as Jesus trained • Minister as Jesus ministered • Lead as

a disciple's guide to

CHOOSE THE LIFE Exploring a Faith that Embraces Discipleship

BILL HULL

AND

PAUL MASCARELLA

Biblical Studies Press

Richardson, Texas

Trademark and Copyright Information

Copyright © 2006. Bill Hull. All rights reserved.

Published by Biblical Studies Press

1751 International Pkwy, Ste 101, Richardson, TX 75081

www.bible.org

Cover design and layout by Nancy Wade, Advanced Design Solutions.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a

retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—without prior

written permission of the publisher.

ISBN: 0-7375-0067-0

Choose the Life – a disciple's guide 5

INTRO To choose the life is to commit to a way or pattern of life. Its basis

is humility and it is a life of self-denial and submission to others. We choose it because Christ chose it for himself. The essence of faith is to take up our cross daily and follow him.

We don’t just amble our way into this pattern; it is a conscious decision to live by faith. It is fundamentally about giving up the right to run your own life. It is the life Jesus lived, the life to which he has called every disciple. It means to be as unnecessary and irrelevant to our culture as he was to his. And just as we are never more alive as when we deny ourselves, we are never more relevant and necessary than when we choose his life.

The life that Jesus lived and prescribed for us is different than the one being offered by many churches. His servant leadership was radically distinct from what is extolled by secular society and even too bold for what is modeled in the Christian community.

Henri Nouwen said it well, “The long painful history of the Church is people ever and again tempted to choose power over love, control over the cross, being a leader over being led.” 1 It is as Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, “Christianity without discipleship is always Christianity without Christ.” 2

What will we choose? Will we surrender to the powerful forces of our culture and simply try to be successful for Jesus? Or will we choose the life that Jesus chose, and commit to follow him regardless of where he leads?

To put it another way, to choose the life is to commit to:

• Believe what Jesus believed • Live as Jesus lived

6 Choose the Life – a disciple's guide

• Love as Jesus loved • Train as Jesus trained • Minister as Jesus ministered • Lead as Jesus led

To choose the life is to choose His life. Jesus chose His life.

"Because we come out of a divine nature, which chooses to be divine, we must choose to be divine, to be of God, to be one with God, loving and living as he loves and lives…Man cannot originate this life; it must be shown him, and he must choose it…We are not and cannot become true sons without our will willing his will, our doing following his making. He was not the Son of God because he could not help it, but because he willed to be…" 3 George MacDonald

“Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you into something different than it was before…each of us at that moment is progressing to one state or another.” 4 C.S. Lewis

"The ills of the church and of the individual almost totally derive from the simple failure to just do what Jesus told us to do in the Great Commission. That is what it means to choose the life. There is no excuse whatsoever for not doing it, and every rationalization is simply a wound to our own soul, an injury to our group, and an insult to the Christ who told us what to do."5 Dallas Willard


ABOUT THE GUIDE ITS PURPOSE Bill Hull’s book Choose the Life exists to assist the motivated

disciple in entering into a more profound way of thinking and living. That way is the pattern of life Jesus modeled and then called every interested person to follow. It is a life grounded in humility—characterized by submission, obedience, suffering, and the joys of exaltation. It is the life that transforms its adherents and penetrates the strongest resistance.

Choose the Life challenges traditional thinking about what it means

to be a Christian—it rebuilds the Gospel from the disciple up. It asks what is wrong with the Gospel taught in contemporary Western Culture and then suggests some changes in the way it is communicated by the Church. It then calls upon each person to rethink what it means to be a follower of Jesus.

A Disciple’s Guide to Choose the Life is designed to lead disciples in

a ten week course through Choose the Life. However, it is more than

simply a reading guide. It presents the ideas in Choose the Life so as to

provoke a disciple’s thinking towards the application of these truths, which produces in him a faith hospitable to healthy spiritual growth— a faith that embraces discipleship.

ITS PARTICIPANTS Virtually all significant change can, should be, and eventually is,

tested in relationship to others. To say that one is more loving without it being verified in relation to others is hollow. Not only do others need to be involved to test one’s progress, they are needed to encourage and help one another in the journey of transformation. Therefore,


going on the journey with others is absolutely necessary. The Guide is designed to lead each disciple in a personal journey of

spiritual formation by his participation within a “Community” of disciples, who have likewise decided to choose the life.

The “Community” is composed of (optimally) from two to six disciples being lead through this ten week exploration of Choose the Life.

Participants in the Community will have agreed to make time and perform the daily assignments as directed by the Guide. They have

agreed to pray daily for the other members of their Community and to keep whatever is shared at their “Community Meeting” in complete confidence (unless express permission to disclose a specific matter is given by all involved). They will attend and fully participate in each weekly Community Meeting.

ITS PROCESS Change is a process. Events can change people but most often

transformation is a process that takes time. Most studies on change agree that acquiring a new idea and putting it into practice so that it becomes permanent requires three months. This would be the minimum time required. The ten weeks to finish the Guide provides a

solid opportunity for significant transformation. The process employed by the Guide includes:

• Reading the scripture together • Reading a common philosophy of the Christian experience • Journaling insights, questions, and prayers • Discussion over material that has already been studied, prayed

over and reflected upon • Helping each other keep their commitments to God • Helping each other break free of areas of defeat and bondage


• A common commitment to apply what God has impressed on each member

• A common commitment to impact those with whom they have contact

ITS PATTERN The Guide leads an exploration of each successive chapter of the

book (including the introductory material) in ten weeks. Each week—beginning with Chapter One—a chapter is explored

in five daily 30 minute sessions. At each daily session, the disciple begins with prayer focused on

the issues to be presented in the daily reading. The daily reading provides each disciple with core thoughts and key ideas that will be explored in the day’s exercises. Questions are provided designed to help the disciple’s understanding of the core thoughts and key ideas. Disciples are then directed to reflect on the application of these core thoughts and key ideas to their own spiritual growth. Journaling space is provided for answering questions and recording the thoughts, questions, applications, and insights stemming from his reflection.

Once weekly (at the sixth session), the disciple meets with the other disciples which comprise his “Community” at their Community Meeting. Here, they pray together, discuss the core thoughts and key ideas introduced in the week’s readings, share from their times of reflection, and encourage each other on their journey.

Although the Guide was designed primarily for use by groups

consisting of 2 to 6 members optimally, the material contained within can easily be used to effectively lead much larger groups in a discussion based exploration of Choose the Life. This is done by using the 10

weekly Community Meetings as the agendas for a ten-week discussion program. It is recommended, when the Guide is used in a large group setting, that the accompanying DVD be used to introduce the topic


for the week’s discussion. Additional questions to enhance the weekly meeting may be gleaned from the week’s five-day study program.

Lastly, it is recommend that the leader (or leaders) of a weekly discussion group proceed through the Guide together as their own

Community group. The insights that will they will acquire by proceeding on their own journey through Choose the Life will be

invaluable to them and the larger group they will be leading. When leading a classroom sized (or larger) group through Choose

the Life, one must keep in mind that most of the “spiritual traction” for

transformation is due to the interaction that the Lord has with each individual as He interacts with them through the other individuals in a community of believers. To preserve this traction, the leader must provide a venue and time for this interaction. For this reason it is suggested that some time during the weekly session, the leader divide the large group into smaller groups (mimicking the 2 to 6 member Community group) for the purpose of more intimately discussing the issues presented in the week’s session. It is reported after experiencing successive weeks with the same members of this smaller discussion group, that individuals previously not participants in a small group-like program, have desired to continue in just such a program.

While the authors believe that the most effective and efficient means of leading individuals to healthy spiritual transformation is in the context of a smaller Community group, we do acknowledge that the larger group setting may be the only means currently available to a church’s leadership, whereby the biblical truths taught in Choose the Life are likely to be made available. We believe most strongly that

though the form of instruction is important, the function is what must be preserved- Verum supremus vultus (truth above form).


ITS PRODUCT Learning studies demonstrate the importance of application. The

most relevant question a teacher can ask is, “Are my students learning?” According to a leading learning researcher people remember:

• 10% of what they read • 20% of what they hear • 30% of what they see • 50% of what they see and hear • 70% of what they say • 95% of what they teach someone else6

Each session asks the disciple to determine what concrete activity

they can take that week to apply what they have learned. The Guide

highly values the spiritual traction one can get by facing challenges in a

high trust community. This avoids the hothouse effect (people not experienced in the reality of ministry) on groups that do not answer the challenge to reach beyond themselves.

Christ was a man for others; disciples then are to be people for others. It is only in losing ourselves in the mission of loving others that we live in balance and experience the joy that Christ has promised. This is the faith that embraces discipleship. This is the life that cultivates

Christ-likeness and whose product is a transformed disciple—the only life of faith worthy enough to justify our calling upon others to Choose the Life.


PREPARING FOR THE FIRST MEETING COMMUNITY The first order of business is to determine the members, size, and

makeup of the Community. The Community should consist of:

• Members All believers- While no particular age range or level of spiritual maturity (or Christian experience) should be the overarching criterion for inclusion in your Community, but given that the objectives of Choose the Life are only obtainable by Christians, it is assumed that each member of any particular Choose the Life Community is already a Christian.

• Make-up 2 to 6 members (optimally)- The Guide can also be used a discussion guide for leading larger groups through an exploration of Choose the Life (see above, About the Guide, Its Pattern).

• Materials The Book, the Guide, the DVD- Once the membership of the Community is established, each member should acquire a copy of the book, Choose the Life: Exploring a Faith that Embraces Discipleship, and the course guide, a disciple’s guide to Choose the Life. In addition the Community needs to acquire the course DVD entitled: a DVD guide to Choose the Life – . The DVD features Bill Hull, the author of Choose the Life, introducing each week’s core thought, key ideas and concepts. These materials must be available to each member at least one week prior to the first Community Meeting.


This brings us to the second order of business: When and where the Community will meet.

CALENDAR The members of the Community need to establish when and

where the Community will have its weekly meeting. Bear in mind that it will require about 90 minutes from start-to-finish to accomplish all that is to be done at the Community Meeting. What matters most in setting the time of these meetings is that all of the members are able to make this accommodation. As you will learn in the course of this journey, the commitment to Community is essential to your own personal transformation. Therefore it is imperative that all members be present, and able to contribute, each time the Community meets.

In selecting the location of your meeting, choose a site that will allow for the fewest possible interruptions, confidential conversation, and ease of access. After consensus is reached, write the start date and meeting time, and the location in the appropriate space provided on the “Choose the Life: Community Purpose and Covenant” in Appendix

One of your Guide.

COMMITMENT Having determined the Community’s membership and meeting

location and time, the members of the newly formed Community need to clearly state and affirm their commitment to accomplishing what is stated in their Purpose and Covenant. We have included a covenant (see Choose the Life: Community Purpose and Covenant in Appendix

One of this Guide) and each member should read, sign, and turn-in the

Covenant at their first Community Meeting.


The final order of business in preparation for your first Community Meeting is for each Community member to read Dallas Willard’s “Foreword” to Choose the Life (pages 6-8) and the “Preface: A Conversation Starter” (pages 9-14), and to write their answers for each

of the questions posed in the Guide for the First Week’s Community

Meeting.

16

WEEK 1 Your First Community Meeting

In preparation for this meeting, all Community members have

read Dallas Willard’s “Foreword” (pages 6-8) and “Preface: A

Conversation Starter” (pages 9-14) from Choose the Life and have

written their answers to each of the questions posed in the Guide for

the First Week’s Community Meeting.

AT THIS WEEK’S INTRODUCTORY MEETING 1. Open with prayer asking the Lord to help you become

conscious of any difference that may exist between what He

means by discipleship and we have allowed it to become. Pray

that He will grow in us the desire to be obedient as we live-

out His faith.

2. Play the introductory video clip “Cheap Grace” from a DVD

guide to Choose the Life.

3. Collect the signed Choose the Life Community Purpose and

Covenant from each Community member.

4. Have one member of your Community read aloud the

following introduction to this week’s meeting:

Dallas Willard begins his Foreword to CTL with, “There are

now signs that significant groups among professing Christians are

ready to take up discipleship to Jesus as the core of their religious


life.” One of those signs is your reading of Choose the Life and your

participation in a Community that will discuss the core thoughts and

key ideas and apply the practices presented therein. The use of the

word “core” indicates that it is central to one’s life. The following

discussion is designed to draw out a person’s spiritual readiness to

choose the life of following Jesus, a life of humility, obedience,

submission, and sacrifice.

5. Discuss with the members of your Community, the answers

you developed for this week’s questions.

QUESTIONS 1. When you were a child, to what were you highly committed?

Describe what that commitment entailed, how it affected

your commitments as an adult.

2. Dallas Willard cites three things vital to spiritual growth

(pages 6, 7). Discuss each one and evaluate its place in your

present experience.

3. What does Bonhoeffer mean by “cheap grace?” (page 10) Do

you think “cheap grace” is a problem in your life, faith

community, or church? How is it manifested?

18 Choose The Life Discussion Guide

4. Do you agree with the description of the “problem” and the

“solution” advanced? (pages 11-13)

REFLECTION Talk with one another about your readiness (or reluctance)at this

time, to choose the life, specifically, about living out “a faith that

embraces discipleship.” Why now?

PRAYER Share matters for the Community to pray about through the

following week. Make note of the requests made to use in your daily

time of prayer.

CLOSE Pray together, and close the meeting.

19

WEEK TWO Choose the Life, Chapter One

“How I Got to this Point”

DAY ONE

PRAYER Dear Lord, help me to be dissatisfied with my current ways of being

“successful” in accomplishing your calling in my life. Begin now to

develop in me a taste for your ways.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter One, (pages 15-16).

QUESTION What were the signs that indicated to the author that something is

“not working,” that “something is wrong”?

REFLECTION What has been the greatest motivator for change in your life? Why

was it so motivating for you?

PRAYER Pray for each member of your Community and their shared requests.


DAY TWO

PRAYER Lord, today, help me to be very conscious of how I conduct myself.

Help me to see if I exhibit character traits that those who know Jesus

well would recognize.

TODAY’S READING: Choose the Life, Chapter One (page 17, paragraphs[¶] 1-4)

QUESTION What caused the author to want to change? What were the factors

that were causing the despair the author was feeling?

REFLECTION Do you find yourself “stuck in the same rut” of “religious activity

without transformation” and “doing things right” but with “little

movement from the Spirit”? List those things you are doing “right.”

What do you expect to see in those things which would evidence the

Spirit’s movement?

Things I’m doing right Expected Evidence of the Spirit’s movement

____________________ ________________________________ ____________________ ________________________________ ____________________ ________________________________ ____________________ ________________________________



DAY THREE

PRAYER Lord, help me to admit may failure in following you. And help me to

gain a greater understanding of your love and acceptance of me, as I

seek to be transformed into the disciple you called me to be.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter One (page 17 ¶ 5 through page 18 ¶ 2)

QUESTIONS 1. What caused the “plague” to lift?

2. What did the author mean when he told his congregation

that he intended to “evangelism them”?

REFLECTION What do you believe you should see happening in your life if you

were truly living as a disciple of Jesus?



DAY FOUR

PRAYER Lord, help me to change my understanding of following You, so that I really act like the disciple you describe in the Sermon on the Mount.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter One (page 18 ¶ 3 through page 19 ¶ 3)

QUESTIONS 1. According to the author, what is the “problem” and what is

the “solution”?

2. What does a disciple look like (according to Matthew 5-7)?

REFLECTION How (and about what) have you been practicing “sin management”?



DAY FIVE

PRAYER Lord, teach me how to minister as You minister and lead others the

way You led.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter One (page 19 ¶ 4 through page 21)

QUESTION What do you suppose the author means when he states that “Jesus

was irrelevant and unnecessary to his culture”?

REFLECTION What are the obstacles which keep you from sincerely saying to God,

“Lord, I’m not afraid of any change you want to make in my life”? List

the obstacles and list what fear they cause you to have.

The Obstacles The Fear



WEEK TWO Choose the Life, Chapter One

“How I Got to this Point”

Community Meeting

DAY SIX

In preparation for this week’s Meeting, you will have read

Chapter One, “How I Got to This Point” in Choose the Life and have

answered the reading questions for each day.

AT THIS WEEK’S MEETING 1. Open this session by asking God to help us “be transformed

from relevance to prayer, from popularity to ministry, and

from leading to being lead.” Help me to “jump-in” and swim

the “uncertain seas of downward mobility.”

2. Play video clip two, “How I got to this Point,” from a DVD


3. Have one member of your group read aloud the following

introduction to this week’s Meeting:

Most of us don’t willingly invite change into our lives. I

suppose one exception to that rule is getting something we

really want that is shiny and new: a car, a house, a trip, a new

spouse. Generally, however, we resist change. In fact, the

cause of every problem is change. Change is painful; change

threatens our safety and security, and it makes us less

confident of our abilities. When that change challenges one’s

very sense of identity, it intimidates and is naturally resisted.

But if we want to grow in the image of Christ, change is the


name of the game. Transformation is change and that change

only comes when we say, “Lord, I’m not afraid of any change

you want to make in my life.” It is to this destination that we

go in this lesson.

As a group, answer the following questions:

QUESTIONS 1. What did Bill mean when he used the metaphor of “fly-

fishing on ice” to represent his struggles while serving as

Senior Pastor at a “successful” church?

2. What are the differences between believing in Jesus and

believing what Jesus believed? (pages 19, 20)

3. Discuss the five-fold way the author presents of how we are

to follow Jesus. (pages 19, 20)

REFLECTION 1. What are we to understand by Bill’s statement that

“competence is a cul-de-sac”?


2. How are brokenness and humility “essential to spiritual

health”?

CLOSE Share matters for the Community to pray about through the

following week. Pray to close the meeting.

Jesus calls us not to sin management but to transformation, where we

experience one breakthrough after another and do away with sin in our lives.

27

WEEK THREEChoose the Life, Chapter Two

“The Need for the Life”

DAY ONE

PRAYER Lord, teach me to repent of my commitment to a non-discipleship

style of Christianity.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Two, (page 23 through page 28, ¶ 2).

QUESTIONS 1. What does the author mean when he says that “we have

made the test for salvation doctrinal rather than behavioral”?

2. What is “missing” from the gospel of our modern church?

REFLECTION What are your “default settings,” where did you get them, and why

do you keep them?



DAY TWO

PRAYER Lord, remake me into someone who is neither bored, nor boring.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Two, (page 28 ¶ 3 through page 31 ¶ 2).

QUESTIONS 1. Do you agree with the author that “discipleship or spiritual

formation is the primary and exclusive work of the church”?

Why is this understanding correct (or incorrect)?

2. Why has church become “boring”?

REFLECTION Given the truth of Luke 6:40, why would being like Jesus keep you

from ever being a bored and boring person?



DAY THREE

PRAYER Lord, help me not to fear Your leading. Help me to make heart-deep

commitments to You.


QUESTIONS 1. What is different in the first disciples' understanding of

discipleship from the contemporary church’s understanding?

2. What does the author say is the first thing that must be

done?

REFLECTION Reflect on the idea of “choosing the life” in light of Matthew 6:24.



DAY FOUR

PRAYER Lord, help me to submit to Your leading through “another like-

minded person in mutual submission and humility.” Help me not to

fear bringing “everything out of hiding and into the light.”


QUESTIONS 1. What is the “key part of being a follower of Jesus”? (page 35)

2. What should discipleship look like today? (page 36)

REFLECTION If faith is only real in obedience, how would the casual observer

recognize that you have this faith? How do those who know you best

“see” your faith?



DAY FIVE

PRAYER Lord, prepare me to understand and make the changes I need to

make to become Your disciple and to make disciples for You among

the unbelieving.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Two, (page 50 ¶ 4 through page 42).

QUESTIONS 1. What does this “new kind of evangelism” consist in?

2. What is “the great omission in the Great Commission”?

What has this “omission” caused?

REFLECTION About what particular sin have you “raised the white flag of

surrender” and chosen the “sin management” approach to addressing

it?



WEEK THREEChoose the Life, Chapter Two

“The Need for the Life”

Community Meeting

DAY SIX


Chapter Two, “The Need for the Life” in Choose the Life and have


AT THIS WEEK’S MEETING 1. Open this session by praying for God to help us understand

what it is about us that needs to be changed. Help us submit

to however You intend to change us. And help us not to fear

the repercussions of this changes. Help us to trust ourselves

with You.

2. Play video clip three, “The Need for the Life,” from a DVD




There is common concern among church watchers that the

message has been compromised, and the harmful results have

cascaded down into our definition of faith and what it means

to be a Christian. The test for salvation has become doctrinal

rather than behavioral. We have ritualized salvation with

walking the aisle, praying to receive Christ, or signing a

doctrinal statement. The trouble with our evangelism is that

we have made it so easy to enter the Christian life that we


miss the repentance, commitment, and regeneration that

provide the power to live the Christian life, The trouble with

our discipleship is that it is “in-house” and non-reproductive.

These two factors alone account for the decline in church

attendance, but more importantly, the decline in disciples

being “salt and light” in the world.


QUESTIONS 1. Discuss whether your test for salvation been primarily

“doctrinal” rather than “behavioral.”?

2. Discuss the statement that “faith is only real in obedience.”

How does it challenge our modern notion of faith? (page 24)

3. How does holding a faith that does not transform lead to “sin

management”? (page 26)


REFLECTION Do you think your church and other churches have accepted a

non-discipleship Christianity? Is it optional in your life?

Do you think you have a choice? (pages 26-30)



Discipleship today must also begin with a commitment of submission to

at least one other person. Choosing the life begins right here.

35

WEEK FOURChoose the Life, Chapter Three

“The Call to the Life”

DAY ONE

PRAYER Lord, help me to understand exactly what it is that you are calling me

to do. Enable me to do it. And then, allow me to lead others in it.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Three (page 43 to page 47).

QUESTIONS 1. What does the author mean by “the first act of a disciple is

obedience, not a confession”?

2. How, in our current church culture, is “spiritual greatness”

being “measured by size”?

REFLECTION What are some of the rivals in your life to following Jesus?



DAY TWO

PRAYER Lord, give me the strength to deny myself the right to be in charge of

my own life. Train me to appreciate my new position as I follow

behind You.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Three (page 47 ¶ 1 to page 52).

QUESTIONS 1. Who is Jesus calling to the life of discipleship? And, why

does the term “spiritual formation” war against the inclusion

of those whom Jesus intended to include?

2. What is self-denial, and why is it “essential”? (pages 49-52)

REFLECTION What are some things that you must deny yourself to follow Jesus in

the fullest sense of being His disciple?



DAY THREE

PRAYER Lord, help me to give up control of the timing and the method of my

actions and submit my dreams, visions, and breakthrough ideas to

Your leadership. I deny myself in order to say yes to You. Please

steady my hand as I drive the stake of obedience to You, through the

heart of my will, my ego, and my desire to control.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Three (page 52 ¶ 1 to page 55 ¶ 1).

QUESTION Why is seeking the answer to the question “Lord, what do you want me to do; what is my mission?” before we start walking the path of

obedience a common mistake?

REFLECTION What do you (and others who know you well) identify as your

strengths? (page 53)



DAY FOUR

PRAYER Lord, remind me to lead not from my strengths, but from a heart

that is willing to suffer any humiliation as I follow Your leading.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Three (page 55 ¶ 1 through page 57).

QUESTIONS 1. Why does Jesus use the simile of taking up a cross in His

description of following Him? (Luke 9:23)

2. Why does Jesus tell us to take up our cross daily?

REFLECTION What are the areas in which you are “following with doubt”?



DAY FIVE

PRAYER Lord, teach me to do first what interests You most—often what is in

my neighbor’s best interest—and never what interests only me.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Three (page 58 through 60).

QUESTIONS 1. What is “God’s paradox”? (page 58)

2. What are the “rewards” for answering “to the Society of

Jesus”?

REFLECTION How have you benefited in living by God’s paradox?



WEEK FOURChoose the Life, Chapter

Three “The Call to the Life”

Community Meeting

DAY SIX


Chapter Three, “The Call to the Life” in Choose the Life and have


AT THIS WEEK’S MEETING 1. Open this session by praying for God to teach us how to hold

our lives loosely, to become self-forgetting, and to loose

ourselves in the joy of accomplishing of His mission.

2. Play video clip four, “The Call to the Life,” from a DVD guide

to Choose the Life.



It has been taught and caught in far too many Christian

settings that Jesus’ invitation, “If anyone would come after

me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily and follow

after me,” is for the spiritual elite—for those called to suffer,

for those whom history will call “the saints.” This idea leads

us to the belief that there are a few chosen ones whose

destiny is to live at a higher level than the rest of us and that

it is the role of the ordinary disciple to support the special

ones. While there may, by necessity, be an element of this in

any group of people, Jesus’ call is universal. This is why he


uses the word “anyone.” The call to this kind of life is for

everyone.


QUESTIONS 1. What is meant by “faith is more than agreement, it is taking

up your cross”?

2. The author presents various things disciples are urged to

follow. These alternatives to Jesus’ calling may appeal to us

but can be very dangerous. What are these alternatives, and

why could they lead us astray? (page 46)


REFLECTION 1. How should a disciple give these alternatives their proper

consideration, when seeking to follow Jesus’ leading?

2. Why is self-denial “essential”? (page 49-52)



… until we actually step out in obedience to him, we can’t experience the

transformation of our character. As we follow him, Jesus will reveal more

about himself and our mission day by day.

43

WEEK FIVE Choose the Life, Chapter Four

“The Habits of the Life”

DAY ONE

PRAYER Lord, I want to be changed, but I don’t like the process, especially

because it involves some kind of pain. Give me power beyond my

own will to help me remain in the pain, while you walk with me

through my transformation.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Four (page 61 through page 64 ¶ 2).

QUESTIONS 1. Why should we practice the spiritual disciplines?

2. How do “habits create character”?

REFLECTION What do you consider to your “best” habit?

What would others consider to be your “worst” habit?

How did you develop these habits?



DAY TWO

PRAYER Lord, I’ve tried and tried so many times to make the “right” changes

in myself. I know that I am at war with myself, that as strong is my

will is to change, the same strength of my will is opposing that

change, desiring to remain the same. Lord, please rescue me from my “body of death.” Create in me one will, Yours.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Four (page 64 ¶ 3 through page 66).

QUESTIONS 1. What is meant by “Spiritual disciplines are to transformation

what calisthenics are to sport”?

2. What does it mean that the spiritual disciplines have an

“work indirectly” in creating character?

REFLECTION Why is willpower alone of little help in our transformation?



DAY THREE

PRAYER Lord, I’ve worked hard to know more about You. I now desire to be

the kind of person whom You are delighted to know. Help me

become that kind of person—Your friend.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Four (page 67 through page 69 ¶ 2).

QUESTIONS 1. What was meant by the claim that “Grace is not opposed to

effort, it is opposed to earning”? Do you agree with this

claim? Why?

2. What is the “malpractice of the disciplines”?

REFLECTION What do each of the tools (spiritual disciplines) in your “tool shed” look like? Which ones are well worn from constant use? rusty? Which ones have never been taken out of their package? Which ones are neglected because you aren’t sure you know what they are for, or how to use them?



DAY FOUR

PRAYER Lord, I confess that I have been one of the “undisciplined disciples.” I

choose now a different life. I will no longer try to be godly; I will train

to be godly. I choose Your life.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Four (page 69 ¶ 3 through page 74 ¶ 2).

QUESTIONS 1. What is an “undisciplined disciple”?

2. What is the “cost of non-discipleship”?

REFLECTION What has “non-discipleship” cost you personally?



DAY FIVE

PRAYER Lord, I’ve found it hard to follow You. Not because I do not know

the right thing to do (I usually do), but because it’s easier (it’s almost

automatic) to do otherwise. My “default setting” is usually set to

respond differently from what I know is the right response. Please

train me so that I will respond freely and easily from a different

default setting—Yours.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Four (page 74 ¶ 3 through page 79).

QUESTIONS 1. What is the “power of habit”?

2. Discuss the difference in attitude between “trying” and

“training” to be godly?

REFLECTION How is it that training in the spiritual disciplines causes Jesus’ yoke

to be “easy” (Matthew 11:30)?



WEEK FIVE Choose the Life, Chapter Four

“The Habits of the Life”

Community Meeting

DAY SIX


Chapter Three, “The Habits of the Life” in Choose the Life and have


AT THIS WEEK’S MEETING 1. Open this session in prayer.

2. Play video clip five, “The Habits of the Life,” from a DVD




The spiritual disciplines are essential to the deliverance of

human beings from the concrete power of sin. The interplay

between discipline and disciple is not without importance.

John Ortberg says, “Disciplined people can do the right thing

at the right time in the right way for the right reason.”7 The

practice of the disciplines develop habits of the heart that

make a disciple more capable of answering the call of God on

his or her life. It is equally important to understand that the

disciplines are simply tools that God uses to cultivate a more

intimate relationship with us. The disciplines are meditation,

chastity, service, fasting, sacrifice, worship, simplicity,


fellowship, frugality, submission, prayer, secrecy, confession,

study, celebration, silence, solitude and charity.


QUESTIONS 1. Drawing from the list above in the introductory paragraph,

what disciplines have you engaged in at one time or another

(you may discover that you have experienced most of them)?

At that time, what effect did they have upon you?

2. Looking again at the list above, and list examples of these

disciplines being practiced in the life of Jesus?

The Spiritual Discipline Jesus Practicing that Discipline


REFLECTION 1. Training to practice the spiritual disciplines without being

held accountable is very difficult. What are the challenges

you face in connecting at a deep level with another person or

small group (keeping in mind that some of the necessary

qualities to cultivate a helpful relationship are humility,

submission, and vulnerability)?

2. Knowing that not all the spiritual disciplines are to be

practiced concurrently, how will you decide which ones

should be practiced when? Which ones have you determined

are crucial for you to practice at this time?



The spiritual disciplines transform the mind and train us for everything…

Character is formed by the Holy Spirit, and the disciplines are the tools.


WEEK SIX Choose the Life, Chapter Five

“The Inner Workings of the Life”

DAY ONE

PRAYER Lord, when I was young I had many visions of myself being great.

But as I grew older I realized (for whatever reason) that almost all of

them would not come true. Yet, even with this disappointment, I still

have that hunger inside me to be in some way, uniquely great. Lord,

help me to become the uniquely great person You have always meant

me to be.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Five (page 81 through page 85 ¶ 1).

QUESTION What good can having a positive vision of yourself, when you are

young, do for you in the future?

REFLECTION What part does vision play in your spiritual formation?

PRAYER

Pray for each member of your Community and their shared requests.


DAY TWO

PRAYER Lord, I know that have accepted me “Just As I Am.” But I know also

that You will never be satisfied with me as such. Teach me to be

dissatisfied with who I have been, and train me to prefer being the

new person you are making.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Five (page 85 ¶ 2 through page 89 ¶ 3)

QUESTIONS 1. Why is being crucified with Christ the necessary step to

taking on a new spiritual person?

2. What does subjecting the will have to do with triggering

transformation?

REFLECTION Transformation is a process. What are some specific steps you are

taking to balance the passive voice (Romans 6:6-8) of the Christian

faith and the active voice (Galatians 5:24, 25)—in other words,

between being and doing?



DAY THREE

PRAYER Lord, you know that I’m not all that comfortable with “sharing” and

discussing my personal thoughts and ideas and feelings with others.

Please help me to develop a higher concern for becoming who You

want me to be, than about what other’s may think about who I am

now.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Five (page 89 ¶ 4 through page 91).

QUESTIONS 1. How is “learning to live in the disciplines…similar to learning

a foreign language”?

2. In what ways is commitment and involvement in a

discipleship community essential to transformation?

REFLECTION What is it about commitment and involvement in a discipleship

community that you find positive, or negative, or just worrisome?



DAY FOUR

PRAYER Lord, teach me about how you intend me change me. I know from

my own experience that me just changing my mind, usually won’t

change anything at all. Help me to learn how to change.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Five (page 92 through page 96 ¶ 1).

QUESTIONS 1. What does the author mean when he states that, “the body is

a tool for God”? Does God mean to use our bodies to

transform the other “parts” of us? How? (Consider Romans

12:1-2)

2. How is transformation both an “inside-out” and an “outside-

in” operation?

REFLECTION What natural circumstances of life has God used as opportunities to

grow you to be like Him?



DAY FIVE

PRAYER Lord, I’m coming to believe that You really are dedicated to making

me into all that I can be. All I ask is for You to be with me when it

gets tough.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Five (page 96 ¶ 2 through page 100).

QUESTIONS 1. What were the two events or experiences that were reported

to have caused the most important spiritual transformation?

2. What does it tell you about God’s determination to grow you

to complete maturity when He will use even our feelings of

being “utterly, unbearably crushed” and “despairing of life” to

form us?

REFLECTION What are the fears which keep you from following Jesus fully?



WEEK SIX Choose the Life, Chapter Five

“The Inner Workings of the Life”

Community Meeting

DAY SIX


Chapter Three, “The Inner Workings of the Life” in Choose the Life and

have answered the reading questions for each day.


2. Play video clip six, “The Inner Workings of the Life,” from a

DVD guide to Choose the Life.



How is character formed? What really goes on inside when

we are being spiritually formed? This session addresses the

inner workings of transformation. When one commits to

Christ, the life of discipleship begins. Discipleship means: I

am in a state of following Christ, and therefore, I arrange my

life around the practices of Jesus. Spiritual formation is the

direct act of the Holy Spirit on the inner person.

Discipleship is the choice. The inner person is formed by the

practice of the disciplines when our vision is to become like

Christ. That is why we can say that the Spirit of the

disciplines is the Holy Spirit.



QUESTIONS 1. What was your vision of your future when you were young?

Did you have an alter ego like the author’s Bobby Logan?

2. Talk about the difference between the first and second

crucifixion in practical terms, the difference between the

passive voice (the first crucifixion) and the active voice (the

second crucifixion).

REFLECTION What are some ways God has used transformational

combinations in your life?



Following Jesus, however, requires a different value system. He is to lead,

and I am to follow, which means I give up the right to run my own life.

58

WEEK SEVENChoose the Life, Chapter Six

“The Mind and the Life”

DAY ONE

PRAYER Lord, I understand that many things that are untrue, unhealthy, and

undesirable to You find a home in my mind. Train me Lord to make

my mind a place that is inhospitable to any thought that opposes

You.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Six (page 101 through page 107 ¶ 2).

QUESTIONS 1. What does Paul mean by telling us that we need Christ’s

“attitude” or “mind-set” in us?

2. How the mind can be reprogrammed?

REFLECTION Why is it sometimes difficult to accept as true something that you

have believed to be false, even when you fully agree that the facts in

evidence are irrefutable and compelling? Give an example.



DAY TWO

PRAYER Lord, I need to be trained to recognize Your voice. “I know that I

have to move from speaking about Jesus to letting Him speak within

me, from thinking about Jesus to letting Him think within me, from

acting for and with Jesus to letting Him act through me.”

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Six (page 107 ¶ 3 through page 111).

QUESTIONS 1. What are some false ideas that God has changed in you?

2. What, according to the author, is the basic message in all

temptation?

REFLECTION What are some good ways to detect those false beliefs which have

become resident in your mind, that you may use unconsciously in

your thinking?



DAY THREE

PRAYER Lord, lead me not in my temptation, but deliver me from the Evil

One.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Six (page 112 to page 116 ¶ 1).

QUESTIONS 1. What are some of “Satan’s favorite ideas”?

2. What in your beliefs are each of the “ideas” aimed at

attacking?

REFLECTION How does your struggle with insecurity describe what you truly

believe about what God is really like?



DAY FOUR

PRAYER “Lord, what lies have I believed, what images of myself and others are

distorted? Lord, bring down those strongholds.”

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Six (page 116 ¶ 1 to page 122 ¶ 1).

QUESTIONS 1. How can what you see in the mirror (your “self-image”) effect

the way you live your life?

2. What did Tozer mean by “whatever comes into your mind

when you think about God is the most important thing

about you”?

REFLECTION What is your strategy to “take every idea and image captive” under

the control of the Spirit working in you?



DAY FIVE

PRAYER Lord, let my mind, its ideas, images, and feelings, be purified through

the washing of Word. Direct my repentance, and lead me to be fully

healthy, so that I can love You with all my heart, soul, mind, and

strength.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Six (page 122 ¶ 1 through page 126).

QUESTIONS 1. Describe how “feelings are the product of both (ideas and

images)”?

2. What is meant by “passions and desires (also know as

feelings) are the most used and powerful tools that trigger

sinful actions”?

REFLECTION What is the relationship between “feelings,” “repentance” and

“health”?



WEEK SEVENChoose the Life, Chapter Six

“The Mind and the Life”

Community Meeting

DAY SIX


Chapter Three, “The Mind and the Life” in Choose the Life and have



2. Play video clip seven, “The Mind and the Life,” from a DVD




The genesis of transformation is the process of renewing of

the mind. Our minds are wired in such a way that we have

thoughts that create images, feelings, and perceptions. Even

spontaneous, unconscious action is based on a cognitive

memory that is fixed in the mind (which explains why every

time I think of eating liver, I immediately gag). When

Olympic Athletes win the Gold Medal, they often cry on the

awards platform at the sound of their National Anthem and

the sight of their flag being raised. This is about the idea that

they have done something wonderful in the name of their

country. The idea is empowered by the image of the flag and

the sound of the music; therefore, it creates a powerful


emotion. Our minds work the same whether it is what we

think about politics, our favorite team, the members of our

family, or deeply held religious beliefs. This is why the battle

for the mind is the most important of all.

Images are the pictures in our mind’s eye. They are concrete

and often specific. The images that accompany our ideas

make them more powerful. They are what the Lincoln

Memorial is to liberty, what Lance Armstrong is to

dedication, and what Elvis Presley is to self-indulgence. Just

as images can be powerfully used for good, they can also

magnify negatives. One’s negative image of self can override

clear thinking or any other force in life.


QUESTIONS 1. Briefly recount a recent conversation you’ve had with a

person of a completely different world view from your own.

Was it difficult for you to “get-through” to them? Why?


2. What are “strongholds”? How do we get them?

How do we get loosed from them?

REFLECTION 1. Have there been moments when you were the “deeply loved,

secure disciple,” who was inspired by God’s love to take a

risk? Share the experience with your group.

2. Take twenty minutes and each person practice Madame

Guyon’s method for meditation on Scripture. Use I

Corinthians 9:24-27. Describe the experience to the group




Waiting on God is not waiting around; it is actively persevering in obedience

as we wait for God to orchestrate circumstances.

The ideas that need to be transformed are deeply embedded, and so the

Scriptures will need to go just as deep.…It is an acquired skill to go deep, to

reroute the words through the heart in prayer reflection.

67

WEEK EIGHTChoose the Life, Chapter Seven

“Relationships and the Life”

DAY ONE

PRAYER Lord, I’ve always thought that You gave me skill by which I should

lead people. Teach me how to lead from my character.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Seven (page 127 through page 129 ¶ 3).

QUESTION What are the perils of leading from you competence?

REFLECTION Recount a time when your skills were not sufficient to properly

accomplish something that just had to be done right (and right then).

What did you think about yourself when you skills “failed” you?



DAY TWO

PRAYER Lord, I desire to grow in Your grace. Grow me into someone who

You would be comfortable entrusting the grow of Your other

children with.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Seven (page 129 ¶ 4 to page 134 ¶ 1).

QUESTIONS 1. What is meant by “the disciple-making climate”? What is the

current “disciple-making climate” like?

2. What do “relationships of trust” and “environments of grace”

look like?

REFLECTION Why do you think a proper balance of relationships, principles, and

environment is so difficult to establish and maintain?



DAY THREE

PRAYER Lord, I’ve heard about Your strength being made perfect in my

weakness. But I must say I do not desire to be seen as weak. Please

help me to understand the defect in my thoughts and desires.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Seven (page 134 ¶ 1 through page 141 ¶ 4).

QUESTIONS 1. What are the “Capacity” and the “Character” ladders? What

do they indicate?

2. Why will be higher on the “Character” ladder take you

farther than being high on the “Capacity” ladder?

REFLECTION How have you relied more on “Capacity” than “Character”?



DAY FOUR

PRAYER Lord, I am so sorry for having been any part of dragging someone

down who is enjoying Your blessings. Teach me to be mindful that I

am to be Your instrument of blessing to build others up, not an

instrument of the Evil One causing Your little ones to stumble.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Seven (page 141 ¶ 5 through page 149 ¶ 2).

QUESTIONS 1. What are “relationships of trust”?

2. How does the “ladder of Success” relate to “relationships of

trust”?

REFLECTION Relate an experience where you were brought crashing down from a

glorious spiritual success by people who should not have done so.

What would have had to be different to keep this experience from

happening?



DAY FIVE

PRAYER Lord, help me to remember the great patience you show to me as I

train to be godly. Bring to my memory the many times you have

responded to my failings and my incompetence with graciousness.

Your grace inspires me to move beyond my own vision.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Seven (page 149 ¶ 3 through page 156).

QUESTIONS 1. What is an “environment of grace”?

2. How does the “ladder of Success” relate to “environments of

grace”?

REFLECTION How do you react when you are affirmed by others? What does it

motive you to do? Do you agree that “it arouses the desire to please

God”?



WEEK EIGHTChoose the Life, Chapter Seven

“Relationships and the Life”

Community Meeting

DAY SIX


Chapter Three, “Relationships and the Life” in Choose the Life and have



2. Play video clip eight, “Relationships and the Life,” from a

DVD guide to Choose the Life.



Bill Thrall wrote, “To rise above and beyond your individual

best, you need a certain kind of environment in which to live

and work. Such an environment would nurture the

integration of heart and hand, word and deed, spirituality

and everyday life. It would nourish your relationship with

God and kindle your connections with those around you.

This environment and the relationships it spawns would help

you become the kind of leader others want to follow.”8 The

most important question anyone can ask and get an answer

to in connection to others is, “Can I trust me with you? In

other words, can we be honest together, can we then submit


to each other, and finally, can we help each other keep our

commitments to God?


QUESTIONS 1. Describe a relationship of trust. (page 146)

2. Describe an environment of grace. (page 149)

REFLECTION 1. There are three elements to the discipleship climate:

principles, relationships, and environment. Review the

author’s story, and describe what was working or not

working in his environment. (pages 130-154)

2. The author talks about how competency took him just so far

and then let him down. Why do you think he thought

competency was enough? (pages 134-136)




The ideas that need to be transformed are deeply embedded, and so the

Scriptures will need to go just as deep.…It is an acquired skill to go deep, to

reroute the words through the heart in prayer and reflection.


WEEK NINEChoose the Life, Chapter Eight

“Submission and the Life”

DAY ONE

PRAYER Lord, I confess that the first indicator that I’m being successful is the

accolades I receive from people with whom I work. I love to be

praised—and then act humble. Train me to love being your blessing

to others, especially when my service is unknown to them.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Eight (page 157 through page 162 ¶ 1).

QUESTIONS 1. The author claims that Jesus’ core character trait was

“humility, which manifested itself in submission,” that this is

“the heart of Jesus’ life and mission; everything else flows

from it.” Explain why this is true (or false).

2. What justifies Nouwen’s statement that “the Christian lead

of the future is called to be completely irrelevant and to stand

in this world with nothing to offer but his or her own

vulnerable self”?


REFLECTION Rodin Scott said, “When our daily self-worth and the measure of our

effectiveness come primarily from the reaction of those with whom

we work, then we are finished as Christian leaders.” Why do you

think he believes this to be true? By what means do you measure your

self-worth and effectiveness?



DAY TWO

PRAYER Lord, I fear being insignificant. I’ve always tried to make sure what I

do would count for something. I’ve never really stopped to ask myself

who is doing the counting? I now realize that for me to follow You, I

must let You do the counting. Lord, train me to live by Your

standards, Your system of “weights and measures.”

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Eight (page 162 ¶ 2 to page 166 ¶ 1).

QUESTIONS 1. Why is it that is “in a man” that makes him untrustworthy?

2. In what ways was Jesus “irrelevant” according to His culture?

REFLECTION Describe the freedom you would have if (according to your culture)

your were “irrelevant”?



DAY THREE

PRAYER Lord, train me to behave as though I really do believe the extent to

which You love and value me.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Eight (page 166 ¶ 1 through page 168 ¶ 3).

QUESTIONS 1. How does humility cure our need for false-identity?

2. What is meant by “submission to mission is the cornerstone

of humility, of living in the light of who God says we are”?

REFLECTION How would you be different if you really did believe the extent to

which God loves and values you? What would you fear? What would

limit you?



DAY FOUR

PRAYER Lord, there are times when it’s gotten so tough that I’ve given up. I

want to be someone You can count on. What will it take to become a

disciple that will endure to the end?

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Eight (page 168 ¶ 4 through page 172 ¶ 3).

QUESTIONS 1. What does it mean that “submission is a love word before it

is an authority word”?

2. How will true humility sustain us through the tough times?

REFLECTION Describe a time when you have been abandoned, left alone to

continue on your own. What kept you going? Or, if you stopped,

what caused you to “throw in the towel”?



DAY FIVE

PRAYER Lord, who is it that You want to affirm through me today? Who is it

that you wish for me to remind that they are very valuable to You?

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Eight (page 172 ¶ 4 through page 178).

QUESTIONS 1. What are three things that the submissive life affords us?

2. What was the problem with Timothy that Paul was

addressing when he advised Timothy to “fan into flames” the

gift of God that was within him? Why was this advise

excellent counsel?

REFLECTION Who needs your affirmation, a reminder of their value to God? Do it

today!



WEEK NINEChoose the Life, Chapter Eight

“Submission and the Life”

Community Meeting

DAY SIX


Chapter Three, “Submission and the Life” in Choose the Life and have



2. Play video clip nine, “Submission and the Life,” from a DVD




The greatest truth about submission is that we submit to

what we trust. It is also true that most think of submission as

a negative, as placing yourself in jeopardy; it conjures up

images of abuse or of cult behavior. Americans are told never

to give up their passport or rights as citizens. Jesus

demonstrated that submission was the means that his Father

used to unleash His grace and mercy on the world. Jesus

modeled giving up his rights and changed the world by

leading with his weakness. This session teaches us that

submission is a love word before it is an authority word. In

fact, we will learn that unless we do submit to others we


trust, we won’t get our needs met; we will lack humility, and

we will keep others from loving us.


QUESTIONS 1. What is the most compelling reason to live a life of

submission? (page 156, see Richard Foster’s statement)

2. Talk about how the following results happen when we live in

submission to one another?

That our needs are met

That we will develop humility

That others are free to love us

(meaning that I allow their gifts and care to be

applied to my life, because I am open and vulnerable before

them)


REFLECTION Write out an affirmation statement about someone in your life or in

the group. Make it in the tradition of Paul’s affirmation of Timothy.

Then, share it with that person and/or the group.



When leaders model and communicate authentic relationships, it is a

powerful tool for God to use.


WEEK TEN Choose the Life, Chapter Nine

“Leadership and the Life”

DAY ONE

PRAYER Lord, I sometimes have been critical of Your church, forgetting that I

have never really seen it as You see it- in all its power and glory. I

repent of placing myself above what You love so dearly.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Nine (page 179 through page 188).

QUESTIONS 1. What does the author mean when he describes the church as

“always vacillating between glory and the grotesque”?

2. What is the trap leaders find themselves in, and how can they

get out of it? (pages 180-185)

REFLECTION What are some of temptations leaders face when trying to live by the

same principles that Jesus lived by?



DAY TWO

PRAYER Lord, I’ve always considered being irrelevant and unnecessary as bad

things. Teach me why You want me to be them.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Nine (page 189 through page 196 ¶ 1).

QUESTIONS 1. What does it mean to be “irrelevant” and “unnecessary”?

(pages 184-188)

2. Does being “irrelevant” and “unnecessary” imply that we

must ignore and withdraw from the culture in which we live?

REFLECTION How can attendance at religious services be understood in a balanced

way (note the statements by Trueblood and Willard, pages 189-

191)?



DAY THREE

PRAYER Lord, I know that Your love for me over-flows out of the abundance

of Your heart. I also know that I cannot give what I do not have.

Train me to love from a satisfied soul.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Nine (page 196 ¶ 2 through page 211 ¶ 1).

QUESTIONS 1. Why practice the spiritual disciplines of silence and solitude?

2. Describe what you think a satisfied soul is based on Ps. 23.

REFLECTION How would your actions be different if you lived from a fully

satisfied soul?



DAY FOUR

PRAYER Lord, train me to trust in Your ways, especially when my church

culture tells me You are mistaken.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Nine (page 211 ¶ 2 through page 216 ¶ 1).

QUESTIONS 1. Describe what others would see if you gave yourself to the

principle of discipleship.

2. According to Trueblood, what is “one of the most powerful

ways of turning people’s loyalty to Christ”? Why is this way

so powerful?

REFLECTION Why do we leaders (and you in particular) tend to ignore the second

of the Greatest Commandments (loving our neighbor), preferring

the latest technique for church growth/evangelism?


DAY FIVE


PRAYER Lord, my desire is to know you through whatever means you deem

best for me at this time. Please grow in me the willingness to discover

you through means with which I may not be familiar.

TODAY’S READING Choose the Life, Chapter Nine (page 216 ¶ 2 through page 221).

QUESTIONS 1. How does the author suggest we prepare to give ourselves to

others?

2. What is “lectio divina”? What will this process do?

REFLECTION Using the process called “lectio divina” interact with God through His

Word. Describe your encounter.



WEEK TEN Choose the Life, Chapter Nine

“Leadership and the Life”

Community Meeting

DAY SIX


Chapter Three, “Leadership and the Life” in Choose the Life and have



2. Play video clip ten, “Leadership and the Life,” from a DVD




Many leaders feel trapped, unable to do the work they are

called to do because of working conditions. This is very

common among teachers, professionals in the medical

community, and those who practice law. It is also a big

problem for religious leaders, both clergy and laity. The trap

is real and many Christians find themselves in it. It is

characterized by the desire to be relevant and the need to feel

necessary.

Getting off the gods of our religious culture to which we are

addicted is like going through detox. Their allure is so strong

that it might require beginning with a complete separation

from the conditions in which we live. That means to spend


some extended time in solitude with others of like mind in

order to reset your inner compass. The gods of attendance,

progress, and competence plague all serious Christians. This

session addresses the pathway out to a new way of being and

doing


QUESTION 1. How does our (Western) culture militate against the values

that Jesus modeled?

REFLECTION 1. Identify a few ways in which the prevailing culture has

affected you. Discuss the way you use your money and the

material things you buy. In other words, what is driving you?

Are your goals related to meeting the needs for relevance

according to the world’s values?


2. This would be a good time to share insights from your

journal. How has the experience with Choose the Life caused

you to make changes in your behavior?



Our radical nature is expressed in our stubborn insistence that we follow the

humility and submission of Jesus in his agenda and ways of touching others.

What can be done with competence alone is puny and meager compared to a life

that is lived out of the character of Christ in us.


APPENDIX ONE Choose the Life

Community Purpose and Covenant

OUR COMMUNITIES’ PURPOSE IS: To develop relationships with one another, that will help, support

and encourage each of us to grow in Christ-likeness, through loving

one another by sharing our thoughts, experiences, concerns, fears,

successes and failures, and by serving one another when a need or the opportunity arises, as we choose the life and explore a faith that embraces discipleship.

Therefore, I commit, for the next 10 weeks, to accomplishing our

Purpose by: • Making my spiritual growth and relationship with God one of

my top three priorities (with spouse and family). • Completing the daily readings and exercises on time, each week,

according to the Guide. • Being faithful in my attendance to Community Meetings (only

injury, sickness, family and work schedule conflicts are reasonable excuses for absences), and calling prior to our weekly meeting to inform our leader of my absence.

• Participating in discussion, prayer and the sharing of ideas. • Being honest and open when I share my thoughts and feelings. • Maintaining complete confidentiality of anything discussed in

our group by our members (unless prior permission to disclose the information has been given by all the individuals involved).

• Praying daily for each member of the Community and the needs they have shared.

Name: Date:


ENDNOTES 1 Henri Nouwen, In the Name of Jesus, (New York: Crossroad

Publishing Company, 1993), 60. 2 Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship, (New York:

Macmillan Publishing Company, Inc., 1963), 63-6 4. 3 George MacDonald, Creation in Christ, as quoted by Reuben

Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers

and Other Servants, (Nashville: The Upper Room Press,

1983), 124,125. 4 C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, (New York: Macmillan, 1943),

86. 5 Dallas Willard, “Introduction,” Choose the Life: Exploring a

Faith That Embraces Discipleship, Bill Hull, (Grand Rapids:

Baker Book House, 2004). 6 William Glasser, Control Therapy in the Classroom, (Harper &

Row: NY, 1986); Reality Therapy: A New Approach to

Psychiatry, (Harper & Row: NY, 1965).

7 John Ortberg, The Life You've Always Wanted, (Grand Rapids:

Zondervan, 1997), 54. 8 Bill Thrall, Ascent Of A Leader, (San Francisco: Jossey Bass,

1999), 1.q

94

ABOUT BILL HULL

Bill Hull’s passion has been to help the church return to its disciple making roots,

and he considers himself a discipleship evangelist. This God-given desire has

manifested itself in twenty years of pastoral service and the authorship of ten

books. His first book, Jesus Christ Disciplemaker, is celebrating 20 years with a

new edition. The Disciple Making Pastor and the Disciple Making Church are two

successive books which make up his popular disciple making trilogy. These books

have provided the church with a new paradigm for disciple making.

ABOUT PAUL MASCARELLA Paul K. Mascarella, BA Philosophy, MTS, has served in local church ministries

for more than 25 years as an Associate Pastor, Minister of Music, and Worship

Director while holding an executive management position at a daily newspaper in

Los Angeles, California. He and His wife Denise enjoyed raising their three

children and playing with their two grandchildren. Paul is currently an

Instructor/Mentor at Londen Institute Graduate School of Ministry, and serves

on the Board of Directors of Bill Hull Ministries.

OTHER BOOKS BY BILL HULL

Complete Book of Discipleship

Choose The Life

Jesus Christ Disciplemaker -- 20th Anniversary Edition

Straight Talk On Spiritual Power

Revival That Reforms

Building High Commitment in a Low Commitment World

New Century Disciplemaking

The Disciple Making Pastor

The Disciple Making Church

7 Steps to Transform Your Church

Anxious For Nothing

95

MORE INFORMATION

Bill Hull also teaches seminars on his other writings at various venues or

conferences. He is recognized among pastoral and ministry leaders around the

world because of his published works on leadership. These events are scheduled

by invitation. To inquire, email [email protected].

The Joy of Wasted Time

A three day retreat for 25 or less for the purpose of seeking God and redefining

the meaning of leadership. The focus is to believe what Jesus believed, live as

Jesus lived, love as Jesus loved, train as Jesus trained, minister as Jesus ministered,

and lead as Jesus led.

Foolish Wisdom: The call to be irrelevant and unnecessary

A two day seminar that presents the philosophy of the book, Choose The Life. It

explores a faith that embraces discipleship. It challenges non-discipleship

Christianity and calls for faith to be more than agreement with church teachings.

It presents humility as Jesus’ core character characteristic and explains how all

followers of Jesus can rearrange their lives around the practices of Jesus. It calls

every person of faith to answer the call of Christ and to embrace the life Jesus has

designed for them.

Choose The Life Preview

A three hour look at the various ways in which Choose the Life can be

implemented in a church or ministry context.

For information about Choose the Life and the exciting new happenings in the

Choose The Life Community please visit www.choosethelife.org.

96

About the bible.org Ministry

Before there was eBay®... before there was Amazon.com®... there

was bible.org! Bible.org is a non-profit (501c3) Christian ministry

headquartered in Dallas, Texas. In the last decade bible.org has

grown to serve millions of individuals around the world and

provides thousands of trustworthy resources for Bible study (2 Tim

2:2).

About the NET BIBLE®

The NET BIBLE® is an exciting new translation of the Bible with

60,932 translators’ notes! These translators’ notes make the

original Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic texts of the Bible far more

accessible and unlock the riches of the Bible’s truth from entirely

new perspectives.

The NET BIBLE® is the first modern Bible to be

completely free for anyone, anywhere in the

world to download as part of a powerful new

“Ministry First” approach being pioneered at

bible.org.

Go to www.bible.org for thousands of trustworthy

resources including:

• The NET BIBLE • Discipleship Materials • The Theology Program • More than 10,000 Sermon Illustrations • ABC’s of Christian Growth • Bible Dictionaries and Commentaries

Download the entire NET Bible and 60,932

notes for free at www.bible.org

Documents

CHOOSE THE LIFE - Bible · 2009. 4. 17. · 6 Choose the Life – a disciple's guide • Love as Jesus loved • Train as Jesus trained • Minister as Jesus ministered • Lead as